At the present time the magnetic wheel drive has reached the stage of development where the oscillating magnet couples will rotate the magnetic segmented wheel when the oscillations is done manually. The wheel rotation is smooth and continuous when the manual oscillation is uniform and continuous, and the wheel speed may be increased as the oscillation rate is increased.
Since the adequate functioning of the magnetic/mechanical-conversion concept has now been proven with a working prototype, a practical and economical self and/or external oscillation means for the oscillating magnetic couples must now be developed. The magnetic wheel drive was originally designed to be self-actuated by means of a multi-lobe cam and push rod arrangement, but this approach has not been proven successful to date.
A disadvantage for the self-actuated type of magnetic wheel drive is that the wheel is locked-in with a low, fixed speed output which is dependant on the natural magnetic field interaction between the involved interacting magnet segments.
A mid-diameter direct displacement multi-lobe cam was used for the first prototype, but this did not work because of the high rotational resistance imposed by the high cam lobe angles. A peripheral, direct displacement multi-lobe cam was also tried but this was not successful because of the moderate and sufficient cam lobe resistance to push rod displacement.
Other cam lobe configurations are being planned and developed to make sure that no possible tradeoff to self-actuated mechanical oscillation is overlooked. Another possible approach to self-actuation for the magnetic wheel drive is by the application of a twin level magnetic commutator which is directly connected to the wheel drive shaft. The magnetic commutator sements alternately attract corresponding radial magnets on pull-rods which are pivoted on each of the oscillation plates of the magnetic couples.
While auto-actuation of the magnetic wheel units may be desirable for some self-contained power applications, the low, fixed speed output is not considered attractive and promising for a wide range of household power applications. Because of the inflexibility of speed output of the auto-actuated type of unit the, the development of a variable speed, externally oscillated type of wheel unit is required to meet the growing demand for alternate and auxiliary power means for many applications.
The matching of a large magnetic wheel drive and small solar powered D.C. electric motors is a nearly ideal arrangement since a single or series of small precision D.C. motors can be readily powered by modest arrays of silicon photovoltaic cells located at some convenient rooftop location. The small high efficiency, ball bearing D.C. motors are available which when connected to suitable gear reduction drives can revolve a simple eccentric at sufficient torque and variable speed to cause oscillation of a series of about four to six magnetic oscillating couples.
This series of magnetic oscillating couples will all be connected together with straight linkage to transmit the reciprocating motion from the driving oscillating shaft to the other oscillating shafts of the series. This is a more desirable multiple driving arrangement rather than separate small D.C. motors since synchronism is automatically assured, rather than more complex and less reliable electrical synchronization requirements. Because there is no locked-in synchronism for this type of external oscillation means, the multiple magnetic oscillation couples must be of the minimum interference type, in that they must not become jammed into the wheel magnet segments. Although the proper functioning of the magnetic wheel unit requires that the oscillating magnet couples must enter the wheel's magnet segment interference circle, deflection means must be added to all of the oscillation plates to insure that the continuously revolving wheel will readily by-pass all of the oscillating magnet couples.
The large magnetic wheel unit will consist of a basic non-magnetic wheel disc on which multiple high energy permanent magnet segments are equally spaced around the periphery or rim of wheel. The drive shaft of the wheel rotates on precision ball-bearings and may revolve in either a horizontal or vertical line. The wheel is the driven component of the magnetic wheel drive assembly, and is connected to the load or electrical generator.
The multiple oscillating magnet couples are the driving component of the wheel drive unit and consist of flat, non-magnetic oscillation plates on which identical high energy permanent magnets are secured on either side of these oscillation plates. The magnet segments are placed with opposite poles exposed at the sides, relative to each other so that a north-south pole couple reacts on the wheel's magnet segments. The driven wheel's direction of rotation depends on the polarity direction of the wheel's magnet segments in relation to the multiple oscillating magnetic couples.
The oscillating magnetic couples will make a full back and forth oscillation between two adjacent local wheel magnet segments so that an alternate "pull and push" effect is induced on the magnetic segmented wheel. The basic synchronism between the wheel's magnet segments and the multiple oscillating magnet couples closely simulates the action of a watch or clock escapement mechanism in respect to the natural "cogging" action between the functioning components.
This general magnetic wheel drive arrangement insures smooth and continuous rotation for the driven wheel with an optimum of magnetic energy interchange between the oscillation stations and the magnetic wheel because of near pole face to pole face exposure. It is now believed that this present type of magnetic wheel drive is approaching a theoretical maximum of conversion performance possible, especially when compared with other types of magnetic/mechanical arrangements such as magnetic worm and worm wheels, spur couples, mitre couples, and all types of inferior, linear magnetic devices.
The attractiveness of the basic magnetic wheel and oscillating couples is that a nearly ideal leverage factor is introduced in magnetic/mechanical conversion arrangements. Simply stated, considerably less energy is expended to oscillate the oscillating couples than is produced from the near pole face to pole face magnetic interaction between the functioning magnetic components.
The alternating and uniform "pull and push" force imposed by the oscillating magnet couples on the wheel magnet segments produces no direct back or counter force reaction on the driving oscillating magnet segments which is the master key for a useful and practical magnetic/mechanical conversion drive. The back or counter-reacting force on the oscillating magnet couples is taken directly by the fixed pivots of the oscillation plates, with a minimum of load penalty imposed on the oscillating magnet couples.
All other types of rotary magnetic/mechanical conversion devices, with the possible exception of the worm and worm wheel type, produce an undesirable back reaction force on the driving component and resulting ineffective performance. The magnetic worm and worm wheel units have not proven to be sufficiently worthwhile for commercial applications because of the very high permanent magnetic energy necessary and due to the low speed output of these mechanisms.
When configuration comparisons are made of all types of possible magnetic/mechanical conversion devices it will be noted that the combination of a magnetic wheel driven by multiple oscillating couples will stand out as a practical and useful permanent magnetic conversion arrangement. The incentive for the development of this magnetic wheel drive was the direct outgrowth of overall disappointing performance of solar energy conversion efforts and the frustrations encountered with component costs, conversion efficiency and a lack of suitable energy storage means. While solar energy is being widely hailed for its future potential as a viable alternate energy source, relatively few engineers speak out about relatively poor overall cost/effectiveness due to days-on-end of overcast skies during the winter months when the energy is most needed, especially in the northern latitudes of the U.S.
Because of the less-than-adequate solar energy conversion outlook for the vast majority of American homeowners, othere alternate, small scale, decentralized, energy sources must be explored and developed on a crash program basis. If this is not done within the next several decades we must accept the alternative of a greatly reduced standard of living because of the alarming rise in the rate of present energy costs.
This present magnetic wheel drive represents a practical hardward solution in applied permanent magnetism towards the development and commercialism of a decentralized, silent, fuel-free, household-sized alternate power system. While the power output from an individual magnetic wheel unit may be small, the power output is constant and does not generally depend on the intensity of an external energy source, as do present solar energy systems.